Security circles
No arrests in North Rhine-Westphalia due to plan to attack Cologne Cathedral
Police officers and police emergency vehicles are standing in front of the main train station not far from the cathedral. photo
© Vincent Kempf/dpa
The police investigated Cologne Cathedral with sniffer dogs and a large contingent on the day before Christmas Eve. The reason: The cathedral may be a target of attacks by Islamists. Security measures are high.
In connection with a possible attack plan on the So far there have been no arrests in Cologne Cathedral in North Rhine-Westphalia. The German Press Agency learned this from security circles on Sunday morning.
The police say they have increased security measures at Cologne Cathedral because of indications of a possible attack plan by an Islamist group. Police officers searched the cathedral with sniffer dogs on Saturday evening and announced that they would check all visitors on Christmas Eve. “Bild” had previously reported that there had already been the first arrests by special forces in Vienna and one in Germany on Saturday.
According to dpa information, security authorities had received information about a possible attack plan by an Islamist group on Cologne Cathedral. A church in Vienna was also a possible target, it was said on Saturday.
According to dpa information, the group could possibly have a connection to an offshoot of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist network, which calls itself the Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISPK) and has been in an armed conflict with the militant Islamist Taliban in Afghanistan for several years carries out.
Cologne police increase protective measures
According to “Bild”, the first arrests were made by special forces in Vienna and one in Germany on Saturday. The State Security and Intelligence Directorate in the Austrian Interior Ministry did not want to comment on possible arrests. “We ask for your understanding that we do not comment on current ongoing investigations,” said a spokesman in Vienna late on Saturday evening when asked.
A statement from the Vienna police previously said that the security authorities in Austria had increased their protective measures in view of calls for terrorist attacks against Christian events across Europe, especially on Christmas Eve. The police said that due to a current risk assessment by the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, there is generally an increased risk situation during the Christmas holidays. As a precautionary measure, there will be increased surveillance of endangered places in Vienna and the federal states, including churches and Christmas markets.
Civilian and uniformed forces with special equipment and rifles will therefore be deployed. “Police attention is focused primarily on churches and religious events, especially church services, and on Christmas markets,” the police continued. The police explained that the terror alert level in Austria remains elevated. The additional precautionary measures serve to maintain general safety in Austria, it said.
Since the terrorist attack by the Islamist Hamas on Israel on October 7th, fears have been increasing that attacks could also occur in Germany.